I was about to buy (until I found this site)...

[k9dog]

I was indeed about to buy a Lenser HeadFire Revolution (maybe). I suppose I was convinced that it would be great because it's German. And everything German is well-made, I reasoned...

So anyhow, the Lenser was about £50. That $100, but doesn't account for the fact that you guys get things cheaper regardless of exchange rate. So really, it's probably more like $80 for you in the US.

In the Lenser thread, a lot of people said "for that much, you can get a much better light but most people don't know that". Well, I'm one such newb.

The other light I was looking at was the Petzl Tikka Plus, intrigued as I was by the claimed 80% improvement over the last model. "Brand new tech", I thought.

So, a little context would probably be in order here. I plan to use said headlamp for a long-distance hike in unfamiliar, potentially dangerous terrain. The main danger would be from tripping over a rock and falling down a sharp incline - that sort of thing. So my aim is simply to get something which is capable of lighting up the area in front of me very well - a sufficient area for moving at walking speed.

I figured £50/$80 would probably get me what I needed. I hope I was right

Anyway, you guys have put me off the Lenser. You don't like em, and that's good enough for me. So what about the Tikka Plus 2006 model? Any good? Are there better alternatives?

Thanks for reading. I'm sure I'm not the first to ask, or even the 100th

 

[monkeyboy]

Hello and welcome to CPF

It's true that LED Lenser is not very good although they do have one or two decent products.

The latest LED's are the Cree XR-E and SSC P4 LEDs which offer greatly improved efficiency over the previous genration of power (1+ watt) LEDs. Unfortunately there aren't many headlamps using these LEDs at the moment. (don't know why this is, they've been around over a year)

If you stick around and search the forums, I'm sure you'll find something good.

Off the top of my head, check out these:

Zebralight Q5 (small, floodlight)

Lupine wilma X, Betty X (Large, very expensive, very bright)

 

[Daniel_sk]

:welcome:

If you want Petzl, check out Petzl Tikka XP. It doesn't use the newest LED (it's an older Luxeon LED) but it's still a very good product that I have been using for over a year now. Here is a review on Flashlightreviews.com. The Tikka Plus series use an array of small Nichia LED's, this is good for close-up work but not if you want to see more into the distance. The Tikka XP offers the same and more, because you have a "diffuser" filter and you can choose between a hotspot (distance) or flood (close-up work).
Maybe Petzl will upgrade their headlamps with newer LED's this year? I hope so...

Zebralight Q5 is good for you if you are searching for something with a pure flood light (no hotspot). And it uses just one AA, very tiny, light and effective.

 

[mossyoak]

princeton tec apex. bright flood, and throw (it uses 4 5mm leds for flood, and 1 3 watt luxeon for throw) its pretty much as good as it gets for a stock headlamp. and its around $75.

 

[Daniel_sk]

princeton tec apex. bright flood, and throw (it uses 4 5mm leds for flood, and 1 3 watt luxeon for throw) its pretty much as good as it gets for a stock headlamp. and its around $75.

That's another good option, but I always felt that it's too heavy/big for simple hiking. Especially the external battery pack for 4 AA batteries. I chose the Tikka XP and I never felt I needed more output or runtime (there is enough runtime for several hiking trips). Tikka XP is also cheaper and available in EU.
It really depends on what you would like to use it for.

 

[Groundhog66]

:welcome:


+1 on the Zebralight Q5, comes with some nice attachement options also.


Tim

 

[k9dog]

I think the Princeton Apex is going to be too heavy. 2AA would be fine, but 4 is starting to be overkill I think As it is, I'm going to be carrying around more weight than I have ever carried before in my life. For several months.

Besides, the Apex is $112 here

Can I mention that this thing needs to be waterproof, certainly usable in heavy rain and perhaps the odd bit of falling into rivers

[edit: ZebraLight don't seem to be available in Europe. Also, the listed running time is only 2hrs at 60 lumine (how bright exactly this is I don't know), and drops to 13 lumine in medium mode. Can't help thinking it would be a better product if it used 2 AA instead of one

It's nice and cheap, and I'd be tempted to try one, but for the fact that shipping *and* import duty would make this model too expensive to consider.]

 

[Daniel_sk]

You have three different levels on the Zebralight (you can choose a level anytime). Medium (sufficient) will run for 19 hours, low will run more than 3.5 days (good for night adapted eyes, enough for reading a book). They are going to produce more models in the near future (like one that takes 18650 lion batteries - with higher runtime and more improvements). You can order directly from zebralight.com, I think they mark packages as "Gifts" with low value... I didn't have to pay import duty. But you better email them and ask them to mark the package this way (if you want to prevent trouble with customs office).

The Petzl Tikka XP takes 3xAAA batteries and isn't that heavy compared to other headlamps. But the Zebralight is much ligher, almost weightless with lithium batteries. I sold my Zebralight, I'll wait for models with a focused light. I felt the light was too diffused for hiking on more difficult trails. But it's an excellent headlamp for close-up work, for example in the camp. Best would be to try it out, you can sell it anytime here on CPF Marketplace.

 

[Lightguy27]

:welcome: I would reccomend the Princeton Tec Apex. It has a 3watt main Led which can put ot an 60 Lumen main beam which is pretty foucused but has some spill. It also has four 5mm leds for a flood of light for seeing whats infront of you. There are two versions, one that takes 4aa(Regular Version) and then the pro which takes 2 cr123's, the pro is very lightweight and comfortable. They are both availible for less that 80dollars and in several colors.

Here is a link to the regular version:

http://www.brightguy.com/products/Princeton_Tec_APEX.php

Hers a link to the Pro version: http://www.brightguy.com/products/Princeton_Tec_APEX_PRO.php

I have both and they are excellent headlamps.

-Evan

 

[k9dog]

Sorry, I should have said earlier... I live in the UK. We get a very limited selection of stuff here, and it's much, much more expensive.

For example, the Apex Pro is $160 here. That's a tad over-budget. Well, quite a lot over budget

My concern, and the reason I'm being so damn fussy, is that I won't be able to buy new batteries more than once every 5 days or so. Lithium batteries are the longest lasting, I think, so whatever it is should preferably accept those.

About these CR123s... how do they compare with the Lithium AAs?

[edit: been reading around and there are reports of the Apex being almost guaranteed to break if dropped from any distance. Quite off-putting, if the price hadn't already scared me away ]

 

[monkeyboy]

I live in the UK I've found that it's a good idea to order stuff from the US.

1) It's much cheaper than UK even if you do get shafted with import duty.
2) You quite often get the item faster than if you ordered from the UK.
3) If you have a problem, the staff are generally more friendly and willing to help. In UK, they usually just ignore you or give you bad attitude.

That's my experience anyway. just make sure you order from a reputable dealer if ordering from the US.

These are some good US places I've ordered from:

Lighthound, Sandwich shoppe, Optics HQ.

These places are also supposed to be good:

Brightguy, PTS flashlights

EDIT: I'm not saying that ALL UK sites are bad but I've had quite a few bad experiences ordering from UK but none from US.

 

[k9dog]

Thanks Monkey; shafted is indeed the word for it.

But ordering from the US means I better get it right first time, no way I'm sending it back for a swap

Am I right to be narrowing my search to only headlamps which take Lithium bats? I just found out they're lighter, which is a boon, but also since the last longer too, that would make them a much better route than alkaline. What with not being able to buy more for several days at a time, and not wanting to carry around additional sets of bats.

Unfortunately, that rules out the Petzl lights, the cheapest and most easily purchased on these isles.

I figure I better get a throw and flood unit. Might come in handy, even if I use it 99% on flood, you never know when seeing a little further might come in handy.

 

[monkeyboy]

I don't think you should limit to just lithiums. Headlamps that take AAs are more versatile. Modern Nimh AAs are very good plus you have the option of using energizer lithium AAs. (Check compatibility first)

 

[Daniel_sk]

Well a good rechargeable NiMH AA has comparable runtime than a lithium AA, the lithium does have bit longer runtime but it's a primary cell and it's quite expensive in the long run. New low self discharge NiMH like Eneloop from Sanyo also allow you to charge the battery once and you don't need to worry that it might self-discharged itself over the time you didn't use it.

Lithium CR123A, as used in tactical flashlights or in the Apex Pro headlamp is a bit different story, these are small 3 volt batteries. It's the same chemistry as in lithium AA. But they might be difficult and very expensive to obtain in the UK. I don't see many reasons why to choose a headlamp that runs on CR123A lithium primaries.

The real advantage of lithium cells is, that they work much better in winter.
You are right about Petzl, unfortunately they don't support lithium batteries... But I always just use alkalines in my Tikka XP without any problems and it's cheap to run. I could have used rechargeable NiMH batteries but I found out that one set of alkalines will serve me for a very long time.

 

[k9dog]

Yes, I meant lithium AA vs alkaline AA Not Li-Ion batteries as in phones, laptops. Has to be able to be replaced. Rechargeables probably not suitable as they lose current continuously - in use or not.

Petzl don't take lithium AA.

AFAIK, NiMh is a rechargeable battery only? Again, the leakages makes it unsuitable. There won't be opportunity to recharge it often enough.

[edit: Must admit I'd forgotten about the Eneloop. Even so, I don't want to carry a recharger (extra weight), and I wouldn't encounter a wall socket for days on end anyhow. This will be an uninterrupted hiking trip of several months, if all goes to plan.]

 

[monkeyboy]

cr123a is the popular lithium (unrechargeable - 3V) battery size that a lot of flashlights/ headlamps use

Try Sanyo eneloop nimh AA - Very low self discharge.

Edit: just read your edit.

 

[k9dog]

OK, even at the risk of jinxing myself, I will tell you that my (intended) destination is the Appelachian Trail in the US. Lots, and lots, and lots of uninterrupted woodland. So I'm told

Hence my requirements are a bit odd, I expect.

 

[Daniel_sk]

For these special requirements, a lithium primary cell might be good. Especially because it's very lighweight, good for backpacking. And a good efficient headlamp with long runtimes (I especially like flashlights/headlamps that have a low mode with few lumens).

A solar-charger and NiMH batteries would be also an option :tinfoil: (not really, because it's something that might break easily and many things can go wrong).

 

[ifor powell]

You can get the Princton Tech Apex in the UK. I got the 4 AA version for about £50 in the Spring. It's good and is upgradable but it is heavy. The other light I would recomend if you want somthing lighter would be a Black-Dimond Spot which is a three AAA all in one unit it is about £25 and only about 75g the same as a Tika but the main led gives a good spot that I am happy cycleing down country lanes with. I have just lost mine and an contemplating replacing it with the same again.

Ifor

 

[ifor powell]

You can get the Princton Tech Apex in the UK. I got the 4 AA version for about £50 in the Spring. It's good and is upgradable but it is heavy. The other light I would recomend if you want somthing lighter would be a Black-Dimond Spot which is a three AAA all in one unit it is about £25 and only about 75g the same as a Tika but the main led gives a good spot that I am happy cycleing down country lanes with. I have just lost mine and an contemplating replacing it with the same again.

Ifor